Dedicated to public service in Rancho Cordova
It has been an honor to serve you on the Rancho Cordova City Council for these past 8 years including as
your Mayor in 2017. Our city has a rich history and vibrant neighborhoods. By working together, we have
lowered our crime rate to historic lows, built a more inclusive, responsive and supportive community,
and invested in our youth.
I am proud to have led the effort to pass Measure H in 2014, which has invested over $40 million in our
City, including:
●Investing in our infrastructure by upgrading our roads and sidewalks and filling potholes;
●Expanding our public safety efforts to keep our neighborhoods safe, clean and healthy; and
●Expanding our successful Community College Promise Program offering our high school
graduates and now our veterans free tuition at Folsom Lake College
Our Promise Program has helped hundreds attend college. In addition, for our students in most need, we
have even covered additional expenses like books, transportation, and when the crisis hit the city,
ensured they had access to the technology needed for distance learning.
We have embarked on some exciting new projects like our Mills Station Civic Center and our new youth
center at the former site of the Center for Praise Church on Investment Circle just off Folsom Blvd.
Due to our strong fiscal stewardship – Rancho Cordova has been able to weather this crisis better than
most in the region, but we must continue to work together to ensure a brighter future for all our
residents. I am working day and night to ensure our city is continuing to deliver for our community and
keep us safe.
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Jobs and Economic Development
We live in a great city where neighbors work together to build a stronger community. We have neighborhoods with rich histories and new vibrant communities. Even in tough economic times I have worked hard to encourage economic development in our city. Today we can point to many success stories like the River Gate Plaza where six years ago years ago we had a rundown shopping center with a shuttered Kmart store. Today we have a new vibrant shopping center with Sportsman’s Warehouse, Chick-fil-A and coming soon a Five Guys Burgers & Fries. In the south area, construction is underway on a new Raleys! Just this year it was announced that UC Davis Health would be bringing over 1000 administrative jobs to buildings on White Rock Road!
Improving Education
High quality, effective education is essential to prepare our children for success and build a stronger, more vibrant community. Rancho Cordova schools have quality teachers, principals, and parent leaders, but they need strong partners on the City Council. As a growing city, we need to do everything we can to make sure our schools are supported in the critical work they do. I am proud of our partnerships with our local schools. Prior to being elected to serve the City of Rancho Cordova, I was honored to serve our residents on the School Board. In my final year on the School Board (2008), I worked with dedicated parents to save A.M. Winn Elementary School from closing. Today A.M. Winn is a thriving Waldorf Inspired K-8. A.M. Winn along with George Washington Carver High School make up the only public Waldorf Inspired schools in one neighborhood in this Nation! One of my proudest achievements was the creation of our Community College Promise Program, which offers our high school graduates and now our veterans free tuition at Folsom Lake College. To date hundreds of our students have attended and began their college experience thanks the residents of Rancho Cordova! Thanks to Measure H we have also been able to offer our neediest students additional resources including expenses for books, transportation, and, when the crisis hit the city, ensuring they had the technology for distance learning.
Healthy Communities
In 2013, I led the effort to apply the same standards and restrictions to E-Cigarettes and Vap-Pens that we have for traditional tobacco products. I’m also proud that later that same year we passed the most progressive anti-smoking ordinance in the region that included prohibiting smoking in public parks and at public events like our 4th of July concert. As the father of two young children I know how important it is to protect our young ones from the dangers of second-hand smoke. This year, I have proposed the banning sale of all flavored vaping and tobacco related products in our city. Since 2012 I have also served on the Sacramento Metro Air Quality Management District including as its chair from 2018 to 2020 where I have helped ensure we are investing in cleaner vehicles and machinery in our county. This is the organization responsible for monitoring and advising the public during dangerous air days like our recent wildfires when air quality has reached unhealthy levels.
Keeping Us Safe
Since joining the City Council eight years ago, I have supported and pushed for increased public safety funding. Thanks to new funding from Measure H, passed in 2014, we created the Crime Suppression Unit (CSU) that is focused on preventing serious and violent crimes in Rancho Cordova. This program, along with continued investment in community policing we have brought our crime rates to historic lows.
Homelessness and Supporting our Veterans
Homelessness and Supporting our Veterans Mather Veterans Village opened its first 50 units of permanent supportive housing for Veterans in the summer of 2016. In late 2018, two additional phases were completed adding another 110 units. This unique development offers permanent and transitional housing for homeless veterans directly across the street from Mather’s Veteran Administration (VA) Hospital. With my city council colleagues' support, I voted to invest more than $3 million to this development to address veteran homelessness for our city and region. I'm proud of our commitment to addressing veteran homelessness. I'm also working with our regional leaders to deliver additional resources to address homelessness because it is truly a region issue. For the past four years, I've led the Housing and Homeless Services team for the Sacramento Metro Chamber’s Annual Capitol to Capitol program. As the chair of our regional team of 15 to 20 local leaders, I’ve advocated for additional funding and services for the homeless and increased investment in affordable housing for our region. I’m proud of my record of advocating for more resources to address one of the most pressing issues affecting our city, region and state.